Ladder



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shet H. 0. SMITH.

LADDER.

No. 892,075. Patented 00% 30 1888.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

H. 0. SMITH.

LADDER.

Patented 001;. 30, 1888.

w'vtmm I W m uewtov, fl j wkzzwi 5513 atom 1 MFFTCE PATEN HENRY G. SMITH, OF LA'WRENOE, KANSAS.

LADDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 392,075, dated October 30, 1888.

Application filed July 30, 1888. Serial No. 281.373. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known thatI, HENRY 0. SMITH, acitizen of the United States, residing at Lawrence, in the county of Douglas and State of Kansas, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Ladders, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple,cheap,strong,and durable ladder,suitable for the use of builders and adapted to be used for inside finishing work; and it consists in a certain novel construction and combinatlon of devices, fully set forth hereinafter in connection with the accompanying drawings, and specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective v ew of a ladder embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a vertical central sectional View of the upper portion of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective View of one of the depending brackets. Fig. 4 is a similar view of one of the sockets for the swinging tray. Fig. 5 is a view of the blank from which the sockets are formed. Fig. 6 is a detail view of one of the brackets, showing its inner side.

Referring by letter to the drawings, A designates the top of the ladder, to the under side of which are attached the depending brackets B B,which consist,respectively,of the base plates B, which are secured ,to the top by means of screws or similar means,the depending front and rear ears b and b, which are formed integral with the said base-plates, and the rounded bearings b", which are arranged ondthe inner sides of the ears I) at their upper en s.

The front legs,O C, of theladder are secured at their upper ends to the front ears, I) b, by means of screws or their equivalents, and the steps a c are arranged between the said legs in the ordinary manner, and the rear legs, D D, are provided with rounded upper ends,which are seated in the bearings b b", respectively. The outer sides of the rear legs are provided with studs or screws (1 d,whi'ch operate in slots 1) in the depending ears I), the said slots being concentric with the bearings b It will be seen that the rear legs may be closed up against the rear sides of the front legs in. the way of an ordinary portableladder; but when the joint for the upper ends of the rear legs is made in the manner herein described a weight on the top of the ladder is not borne by a pivot or a hinge, (the studs or screws in this construction being only designed to hold the upper ends of the legs in their bearings,) but is borne by the rounded upper ends of the legs. To the inner sides of the rear legs a short distance from their upper ends are attached the sockets E E, which consist of the inner inclined side plates, 6 e, the horizontal parallel stop-arms e 6, formed integral, re-

spectively, with the front and rear ends of the said side plates, and the clips 6 e on the outer ends of the stop-arms,embracing, respectively, the front and rear edges of the rear legs and secured thereto in a suitable manner. Transverse pivots F F are arranged at the centers of the side plates, 6 e, on which are mounted the front ends of the swinging arms 9 g,which are connected to the tray G. It will be seen that these swinging arms may be raised to a vertical position, and when in a horizontal position their lower sides will bear on the rear stop-arms, e, and their upper sides will bear on the front stop-arms, respectively, on opposite sides of the pivots F F, thereby supporting the tray in a horizontal position.

H H represent swinging arms, which are mounted at their lower ends on the pivots F, and between the upper ends of these arms is pivoted the box or receptacle I. The front side of the box or receptacle is provided with hearings or openings 7c k,which slide on horizontal guide-rods K K, located under the top of the ladder. To obtain access to the contents of the box or receptacle it is swung rearward, guided by the rods K K, until its upper side is exposed,and to close the same it is swung forward under the top of the ladder, against which its upper edge fits snugly.

When the box or receptacle I is in its closed position, the tray maybe raised and closed against the rear side of the same, thus folding the ladder into a compact form.

The advantages in the improved bearings for the upper ends of the movable legs are that there are no parts which are liable to become broken or displaced as when hinges or pivots are employed. The legs may be readily detached for any purpose, and when the ICO legs become loose from long continued use they may be tightened by tightening the screws which form the studs ("6 (1, thereby preventing lost motion.

It will be seen that the parts of the ladder are compactly arranged and simply connected.

The sockets for the front ends of the tray arms are simple, strong, and reliable, and are formed from single sheets of metal, as will be seen from the view of the blank shown in Fig 5.

Having described my invention, I claim 1. In a ladder,the combination of the brackcts depending from the top of the ladder and provided with the ears I) b and curved bearings b at the upper ends of the ears 7), the front legs secured to the ears I), and the rear legs havin rounded upper ends fitting in the bearings If and provided with lateral studs or screws operating in curved slots in the cars l), substantially as specified.

2. In a ladder, the combination, with brackets secured to the top of aladder and provided with the bearings b If and the depending cars I) I), having slots If b,cou centric with the bearings, of the rear legs mounted at their upper ends in the bearings b b and the screws (1 (I,

passing through the slots 1)" b and engaging the said legs, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination, with a ladder having the guides K K, of the box or receptacle sliding at one side on the said guides and the swinging arms afiixed at their upper ends to the box or receptacle and pivoted at their lower ends to the ladder, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4. The combination, with the guide-rods K K, secured to the underside of the top of a ladder, of the box or receptacle I, having bearings 7t 'Itin one side sliding on the said guiderods, and the swinging arms H H, afiixed at their upper ends to the box or receptacle and pivoted at their lower ends to the ladder, whereby when the latter is swung under the top of the ladder its upper edge will close up tightly against the under side of the same, sub stantially as and for the purpose specified.

5. The combination,with sockets secured to a ladder and provided with the parallel hori zontal stop-arms e c not in the same horizontal plane, and the pivots F F, arranged between the said arms, of the swinging tray (l, provided with arms 9 g,which are mounted on the said pivots and bear at their upper and lowersides res )ectivel ,a ainst the sto mar-ms c 0 when the tray is in a horizontal position, substantially as specified.

G. The sockets E E, secured to the legs of a ladder and comprising the inclined plates 6, the parallel stop-arms c c at opposite ends of the said lates and the'eli as 6 0* arran ed on the said stop-arms and secured to the edges of the said legs, in combination with the pivots F F, arranged in the center of the plates (3 a between the said stop-arms, and theswinging tray provided with arms 9 g, mounted on the said pivots and adapted to engage the stop-arms c c, substantially as and for the purpose specified. v

7. The herein-described socket for the purpose named, comprising the side plate, 0, the stop-arms e c, integral with the opposite ends of the plate, and the clips 6' e integral with the free ends of the stop-arms, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY 0. SMITH.

\Vitnesses:

W. S. W001), J. W. KRUM. 

